Mr. Brent Nykoliation reports

NEXTSOURCE MATERIALS PROVIDES UPDATE ON MOLO GRAPHITE MINE COMMISSIONING

NextSource Materials Inc. has provided an update on the commissioning process at its Molo graphite mine in southern Madagascar.

Since announcing first graphite production in June, 2023, the company has progressed methodically through debottlenecking and optimization activities to achieve the plant nameplate capacity of 17,000 tonnes per annum (tpa) of SuperFlake graphite concentrate.

During this ramp-up process, the company further identified and is rectifying underperforming equipment in the screening circuit. These constraints have delayed the point at which NextSource expects to reach plant nameplate capacity.

Installation of replacement equipment is expected to be complete in April and ramp-up projected to continue until June, with the aim of achieving nameplate capacity in July. As a result of the revised schedule, the company expects the first commercial shipment and sale of SuperFlake concentrate under offtake agreements to occur in June.

Notwithstanding a slower-than-expected commissioning process, the company has produced SuperFlake concentrate with a carbon (C) content of over 95 per cent and concentrate is being stockpiled at the mine and at a third party warehouse facility at the Port of Tulear for shipment as qualifying material for prospective customers.

To date, the company has completed the shipment of almost 60 tonnes of qualifying material to itd battery anode facility (BAF) technology partner for testing and conversion into coated, spheronized, purified graphite (CSPG).

Molo mine expansion feasibility study complete

On Dec. 12, 2023, the company announced the results of the Molo graphite mine expansion National Instrument 43-101 technical feasibility study report 2023 that proposed an expansion of the Molo mine up to a production capacity of 150,000 tpa of SuperFlake graphite concentrate.

The feasibility study, prepared by Erudite Strategies Pty. Ltd., has been filed under the company's profile on SEDAR+ at, and is also available for download on NextSource's website.

Readers should refer to the feasibility study for details and assumptions relating to the Molo mine mineral resource and reserve estimates and data verification procedures.

The company has initiated the environmental permitting process for the expansion of the Molo mine. However, the decision to commence the construction of phase 2 will only be taken once the current initiatives to secure both a binding offtake agreement and sufficient financing for construction costs and working capital are satisfactorily concluded .

About NextSource Materials Inc.

NextSource Materials is a battery materials development company based in Toronto, Canada, that is intent on becoming a vertically integrated global supplier of battery materials through the mining and value-added processing of graphite and other minerals.

The company's Molo graphite mine in Madagascar is one of the largest known and highest-quality graphite resources globally, and the only one with SuperFlake graphite. The Molo graphite mine has begun production, with phase 1 mine operations currently undergoing ramp-up to reach its nameplate production capacity of 17,000 tpa of graphite concentrate.

The company is also developing a significant downstream graphite value-add business through the staged rollout of battery anode facilities capable of large-scale production of coated, spheronized and purified graphite for direct delivery to battery and automotive customers, outside of existing Asian supply chains, in a fully transparent and traceable manner.

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